The most amazing and interesting geography imaginable – tick
Icy wind that chills you straight to the bone – tick
Natural phenomena – tick
Iceland is amazing. Hands down incredible. Beautiful, mysterious, interesting; everything you want from an adventure. Well, that’s if you don’t mind the bone chilling cold or putting up with 24 hours of sunlight in summer. However, these are small things for the experiences you’ll get in return.
Arriving at almost midnight into Keflavik airport, I found myself on a bus that had, for the past hour, stopped at every hotel in Reykjavik except mine. This caused a lot of eye rolling on my part, and as I went to look out of the window mid sigh, I found myself faced with one of the most surreal and unexpected experiences of my life.
The Northern Lights were smeared all over the night sky in the most glorious shade of emerald green; morphing into different shapes by the second. The bus was silenced in awe. I should probably explain how rare this sight was. It was in late April and the usual time to see the Northern Lights is between November and February, but even then, there’s no guarantee. So it was such a privilege to see them. To view the Northern Lights, you can take a tour with various companies – they’re all pretty much offer the same things. Oh, and make sure you bring snacks, sometimes it’s a long wait.
Image courtesy of Fredschalk
As you drive around Iceland, you will notice there are no trees, no soil, only mounds of lava covered in moss. It’s actually like you’re on another planet and it’s incredible. The whole of Iceland is just one big natural phenomena that’s volcanically and geologically active. Every house is heated by geothermic power so when you have a hot shower, you end up smelling like sulphur.
One of the viewing platforms for the Northern Lights is in a valley where the Eurasion and North American tectonic plates meet. There are Geysirs that explode every 7 minutes for no reason and the most amazing Gullfos waterfalls that simply take your breath away. Even to those who aren’t interested in geography, you can’t helped but get wrapped up in the raw beauty and natural wonder of the place.
Image courtesy of The Blanz
I’ve yet to mention Iceland’s biggest and best attraction; the Blue Lagoon . For once, this tourist magnet deserves the hype. Having gone twice in the four days I was in Reykjavik saying I enjoyed it is a bit of an understatement. Although, had I known you could do this, I wish I had gone directly en route to the airport as this is an option offered by all the tour guides. Half an hour in the Blue Lagoon’s geothermal seawater and you will be at one with nature even rubbing a mysterious chalk mask found in buckets to the side of the Lagoon over your face and body. Perhaps it’s psycho-sematic, but the place is seriously relaxing. Whether it has the healing powers some claim remains unknown, but the combination of 39 degree water, fog and general ambience is enough to let any worries drift away. Oh and the sandwiches and coffee in the cafe are pretty good too.
Now, as fantastic as Iceland is, unless you’re some kind of ice climbing fanatic and want to spend days camping on ice mountains in the north, 3-4 days is plenty there. After you have done all the touristy stuff, you won’t really want to hang around Reykjavik. There’s nothing bad about the place, but the capital is a little dreary, with Communist style grey buildings everywhere.
Reykjavik feels nothing like its rich Scandinavian neighbours, it’s almost like the awkward cousin of the North. Although having said that, there are some great things about the city like the cute coffee shops and restaurants along Laugavegur, Reykjavik’s main street.
Some practical bits to know for Iceland and Reykjavik; to fly there book tickets here, book your general tours here, have a drink or breakfast at one of the first coffeehouses in Reykjavik and check out this popular restaurant that turns into a nightclub on the weekend.
And that’s Iceland for you.
Notes from… Hamburg
Notes from…Cinque Terre
Notes From…Stockholm
